Colonel Pushpinder Bath assault case: CBI drops attempt-to-murder charge; files chargesheet against 4 Punjab cops | Chandigarh News

MOHALI: The Central Bureau of Investigation has filed a chargesheet before a Mohali court against four Punjab Police personnel in connection with the assault on Colonel Pushpinder Bath, pressing charges of grievous hurt and wrongful restraint, among others.According to the chargesheet, inspector Ronnie Singh has been identified as the principal accused in the case. Notably, the serious charge of attempt to murder, which had figured in the initial police case, has not been included in the CBI’s prosecution.The federal agency has invoked provisions relating to voluntarily causing grievous injuries, wrongful restraint and other allied offences against the accused officials.The case pertains to an incident that allegedly took place on the intervening night of March 13 and 14 near Rajindra Hospital in Patiala. Colonel Bath and his son were reportedly standing beside their car at a roadside eatery when a group of men, later identified as police personnel in civilian clothes, asked the colonel to move his vehicle to make space for theirs.The family has alleged that the exchange escalated into violence, following which more than a dozen police personnel assaulted Colonel Bath and his son with rods and sticks, leaving both injured.Initially, the Patiala Police had registered an FIR against inspectors Harry Boparai, Ronnie Singh and Harjinder Dhillon under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including Section 109 (attempt to murder), provisions related to causing hurt, wrongful restraint and criminal intimidation. Subsequently, another inspector was added to the case under Sections 299 and 191 of the BNS.The filing of the CBI chargesheet marks a significant development in the high-profile case, which has drawn widespread attention due to the alleged involvement of police personnel and the omission of the attempt-to-murder charge at the prosecution stage.